Google has been summoned to explain to the Government why its ads have appeared alongside hate speech and racism

The Government joins global brands in moving away from Google advertising, after a Times investigation found rape apologists, anti-Semites and hate preachers were receiving payouts from publicly-funded ad campaigns.

A Government spokesperson said online advertising had proved “cost-effective” in engaging millions of Brits in campaigns like forces recruitment and blood donation.

However she said the Government expected a “high quality of service”, and that Google had been summoned to the Cabinet Office for discussions about how it would provide this, given the findings.

Google’s representatives were summoned to the Cabinet Office to discuss what would be done to resolve the issue

She said: “Google is responsible for ensuring the high standards applied to Government advertising are adhered to and that adverts do not appear alongside inappropriate content.”

A Google spokeswoman responded: “We have strict guidelines that define where Google ads should appear, and in the vast majority of cases, our policies work as intended, protecting users and advertisers from harmful or inappropriate content.

“We accept that we don’t always get it right, and that sometimes, ads appear where they should not. We’re committed to doing better, and will make changes to our policies and brand controls for advertisers.”

An expert this week revealed how fake news sites profiting from ad campaigns could lead to boycotts

The news comes as a double blow for Google as it was revealed earlier this week that the company risks advertising boycotts if it fails to clamp down on fraud and fake news.

Johnny Hornby, founder of advertising company The&Partnership, said sites must do more to deal with the problem. He suggested the Government should be brought in if they cannot improve the current situation.

Fraudsters are increasingly using criminal tricks to steal from advertisers – including creating “fake news” sites that draw real companies in by making them seem legitimate.

The con artists convince advertisers they are investing in a reputable site by using bots, or hijacked computers, to mimic human browsing habits.

Fake news websites can look legitimate, but the stories are entirely fictional. They will often have similar URLs to genuine news organisations in a bid to appear genuine.

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Social media and search engines have come under fire in recent months for listing the sites, with some claiming it gives their creators credibility.

Google and social network Facebook are responsible for 60 per cent of digital advertising traffic.

They risk losing the advertising industry £13.3 billion this year through ad fraud and fake news, Hornby told The Times.

He said: “It would take all of us in advertising to stand together and it would need big brands such as Unilever and Ford and others to join together and say: ‘Sort this out by September 1 or we will not spend any money with you in September’.”

He added: “This needs to move up organisations to the board level. Advertisers need to work out where their money is going to find out if it is going to organised gangs.”

The social media giant added that advertisers are not threatening to boycott Facebook at present.

The accusations made relate to alleged failures to engage with the industry to implement third party verification systems – something which Facebook denies. A spokesperson said the site now has 24 global third-party measurement partners.

What is Facebook doing to tackle online ad fraud and fake news sites?

Facebook says it does not allow sites which make money from spinning fake news on its platform and takes attempts to do so very seriously.

The measures the social media site uses include:

– Easier reporting of hoax news

– Allowing people to flag stories as disputed

– International fact checking

– Disrupting financial incentives for spammers

– Updated its Trending function to prevent fake news appearing as a topic